NEW YORK — Tennis will have a new world number one from Monday. Elena Rybakina reached the US Open semifinals and secured the top spot from Aryna Sabalenka.
“I’m going to appreciate it more when I finish my career,” Rybakina told the media in New York: “Right now it feels great, but I’m here to win the title, so all my thoughts are in the next match.”
Despite dropping the first set in the quarterfinals against Chinese player Qinwen Zheng, Rybakina turned the match around, saving a break point in the deciding set to seal a 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory.
The Kazakh player, winner of 13 WTA titles, will become the 30th leader of a ranking that has been officially published since November 1975, with Chris Evert’s name at the top.
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Rybakina started the 2026 season with success at the Australian Open, her second Grand Slam after Wimbledon 2022. She arrived there after a rock-solid end to the year, having won the WTA Finals undefeated and claiming the largest prize in the history of women’s sport: 5.2 million dollars.
“When I was a kid I didn’t even think about being professional or playing big tournaments. It wasn’t until I was 17 that I realised I could do great things in tennis. My childhood was just playing with my friends,” admitted the 27-year-old.
Born in Moscow but representing Kazakhstan, Rybakina will be the first player in her country’s history to reach the top: “This is history for my country. I don’t have much time to go home, but when I do it feels great. All the time I see a lot of kids in the clubs, looking at what I am doing, inspiring them.”
How does she compare the feeling of winning a Grand Slam with reaching number one?
“It’s a different achievement, however you play for the titles. Mostly you think about the titles…” she said.
Rybakina will seek a place in the final on Thursday when she faces North American Coco Gauff.
